"Senator Lautenberg's so-called investigation is a partisan charade and an embarrassment to himself and the people of New Jersey," said Senator Doherty.

"Senator Lautenberg couldn't deliver a funding arrangement for the ARC tunnel project that was fair to the taxpayers of this state and is now seeking to shift the blame for his failure.

Governor Christie did the right thing in cancelling this project. New Jersey taxpayers should not be forced to carry the sole liability for huge cost overruns on a project that was marketed as a regional effort.

New Yorkers would benefit substantially from the ARC tunnel but would bear none of the cost. Furthermore, there is no reason why New Jersey was in-line to pay upwards of 70% of the costs associated with the ARC tunnel project when other states have obtained much higher contributions from the federal government.

Why is Senator Lautenberg satisfied that the federal government was contributing 30% of the funding for the ARC tunnel project when the State of Florida is getting 80% of its train construction project funded by the federal government?

It seems that other Members of Congress have been able to more successfully advocate for their states.

In spite of spending 30 years in the Senate, it appears that Mr. Lautenberg lacks similar clout and effectiveness among his colleagues in Washington.

Instead of wasting time fighting Governor Christie, Senator Lautenberg should get back to Washington and redouble his efforts to obtain more federal funding for New Jersey."